Battery cell degassing apparatus

ABSTRACT

A battery cell degassing apparatus for degassing a battery cell having a gas pocket, which includes a chamber cover to which the battery cell is detachably mounted, a vacuum chamber coupled to the chamber cover and configured to accommodate the battery cell in a vacuum environment, the chamber cover being slidable in a vertical direction with respect to the vacuum chamber, a piercing unit provided at the vacuum chamber to pierce a part of the gas pocket, and a pressing unit provided at the vacuum chamber to be spaced apart from the piercing unit and configured to flatten a left surface and a right surface of the battery cell and to discharge a gas inside the battery cell to the outside of the battery cell is provided.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a battery cell degassing apparatus.

The present application claims priority to Korean Patent Application No.10-2016-0162985 filed on Dec. 1, 2016 in the Republic of Korea, thedisclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND ART

Secondary batteries which are highly applicable to various products andexhibit superior electrical properties such as high energy density, etc.are commonly used not only in portable devices but also in electricvehicles (EVs) or hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) driven by electricalpower sources. The secondary battery is drawing attentions as a newenergy source for enhancing environment friendliness and energyefficiency in that the use of fossil fuels can be reduced greatly and nobyproduct is generated during energy consumption.

Secondary batteries widely used at the preset include lithium ionbatteries, lithium polymer batteries, nickel cadmium batteries, nickelhydrogen batteries, nickel zinc batteries and the like. An operatingvoltage of the unit secondary battery cell, namely a unit battery cell,is about 2.5V to 4.5V. Therefore, if a higher output voltage isrequired, a plurality of battery cells may be connected in series toconfigure a battery pack. In addition, depending on the charge/dischargecapacity required for the battery pack, a plurality of battery cells maybe connected in parallel to configure a battery pack. Thus, the numberof battery cells included in the battery pack may be variously setaccording to the required output voltage or the demandedcharge/discharge capacity.

Meanwhile, when a plurality of battery cells are connected in series orin parallel to configure a battery pack, it is common to configure abattery module composed of at least one battery cell first, and thenconfigure a battery pack by using at least one battery module and addingother components.

In recent years, with regard to the battery cell, a pouch-type secondarybattery has been generally used as a lithium polymer battery and. Thepouch-type secondary battery is frequently used recently since it has ahigh energy density per unit weight and volume and easily allows a thinand light design of the battery cell.

A method of manufacturing a battery cell serving as a conventionalpouch-type secondary battery will be described below.

First, a positive electrode plate and a negative electrode plate aremanufactured, and a separator is interposed therebetween, and thenlaminated to form an electrode assembly. Then, a plasticizer (DBP) isextracted from the electrode assembly, an electrode tab is welded to anelectrode lead of the electrode assembly, and the electrode assembly isincluded in a pouch case. After the electrode assembly is included inthe pouch case, an electrolyte is injected into the pouch case so thatthe electrode assembly is impregnated with the electrolyte solution. Ifthe electrolyte is injected as described above, the edges of the pouchcase are bonded by heat fusion to seal the pouch case.

After that, the battery cell assembled as above is subjected to an agingprocess for stabilization, and then a charge/discharge process isperformed to activate the battery cell. However, during thecharge/discharge process, an irreversible reaction occurs between theelectrolyte and additives due to the formation of a solid electrolyteinterphase (SEI) layer, and gas is generated at this time. The gasinside the pouch case needs to be removed, and if the gas is notremoved, a failure occurs in the battery cell. Thus, a degassing processis performed using a battery cell degassing apparatus in order to removethe gas inside the pouch case.

Conventionally, a battery cell degassing apparatus generally removes gasafter the battery cell is pressed. In this case, the gas near a centerof the pouch case of the battery cell is not removed easily.

In order to solve this problem, rolling is performed using a rollingdevice before the battery cell is pressed. However, in this case, sincethe rolling process and the pressing process are performed separately,which lowers the process efficiency and deteriorates the gas removingefficiency.

In addition, the conventional battery cell degassing apparatus maycontaminate the exterior of the battery cell since the body of the pouchcase may become dirty due to the electrolyte discharged during thedegassing process.

Thus, it is required to provide a battery cell degassing apparatus whichmay increase the gas removal efficiency from the battery cell during thedegassing process and minimize the external contamination of the batterycell due to the electrolyte leakage.

DISCLOSURE Technical Problem

The present disclosure is designed to solve the problems of the relatedart, and therefore the present disclosure is directed to providing abattery cell degassing apparatus which may increase the gas removalefficiency from a battery cell while degassing the battery cell andminimize the external contamination of the battery cell due to theelectrolyte leakage

Technical Solution

In one aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a batterycell degassing apparatus for degassing a battery cell having a gaspocket, comprising: a chamber cover to which the battery cell isdetachably mounted; a vacuum chamber coupled to the chamber cover andconfigured to accommodate the battery cell in a vacuum environment, thechamber cover being slidable in a vertical direction with respect to thevacuum chamber; a piercing unit provided at the vacuum chamber to piercea part of the gas pocket; and a pressing unit provided at the vacuumchamber to be spaced apart from the piercing unit and configured toflatten a left surface and a right surface of the battery cell and todischarge a gas inside the battery cell to the outside of the batterycell.

The chamber cover may include a cover body detachably coupled to thevacuum chamber to cover one side of the vacuum chamber; and a supportjig provided at the cover body to support the battery cell.

The support jig may include: a side jig movably mounted to an inner wallof the cover body to support opposite ends of the battery cell; and aguide jig mounted to the inner wall of the cover body to allow thebattery cell to be spaced apart from the inner wall of the cover body.

The side jig may be mounted to the cover body to be movable in at leastone of a front and rear direction and a right and left direction withrespect to the cover body.

The piercing unit may include: a first piercing part provided at a leftside of the gas pocket inside the vacuum chamber; and a second piercingpart disposed to face the first piercing part such that the gas pocketis interposable therebetween.

The first piercing part may include a perforating element to perforate apart of the gas pocket.

The second piercing part may include a perforation support disposed toface the perforating element to support the perforating element when theperforating element performs perforation of the gas pocket.

Each of the first piercing part and the second piercing part may includea vacuum pad that is vacuum-attachable to the gas pocket to spread thegas pocket apart.

Each of the first piercing part and the second piercing part may includean anti-contamination guide that is contactable with the gas pocket toabsorb an electrolyte leaking out of the gas pocket.

The pressing unit may include: a first pressing part provided at a leftside of the battery cell when the battery cell is inside the vacuumchamber to flatten and press the left surface of the battery cell; and asecond pressing part disposed to face the first pressing part to flattenand press the right surface of the battery cell when the battery cell isinterposed therebetween.

The first pressing part may include: a pressing part body configured toflatten and press the left surface of the battery cell; and a liftingelement connected to the pressing part body to move the pressing partbody.

At least one roller may be provided at a right side of the pressing partbody to slidably contact a part of the left surface of the battery cell.The pressing part body may be vertically movable toward the gas pocket.

The second pressing part may include: a pressing part body configured toflatten and press the right surface of the battery cell; and a liftingelement connected to the pressing part body to move the pressing partbody.

At least one roller may be provided at a left side of the pressing partbody to slidably contact a part of the right surface of the batterycell. The pressing part body may be vertically movable toward the gaspocket.

The battery cell may be a pouch-type secondary battery.

Advantageous Effects

According to various embodiments as above, it is possible to provide abattery cell degassing apparatus which may increase the gas removalefficiency from the battery cell while degassing the battery cell andminimize the external contamination of the battery cell due to theelectrolyte leakage.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings illustrate a preferred embodiment of thepresent disclosure and together with the foregoing disclosure, serve toprovide further understanding of the technical features of the presentdisclosure, and thus, the present disclosure is not construed as beinglimited to the drawing.

FIG. 1 is a diagram for illustrating a battery cell degassing apparatusaccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing the battery cell degassing apparatus ofFIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for illustrating a piercing unit employed at thebattery cell degassing apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for illustrating a pressing unit employed at thebattery cell degassing apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIGS. 5 to 9 are diagrams for illustrating operations of the batterycell degassing apparatus of FIG. 1.

BEST MODE

The present disclosure will become more apparent by describing in detailthe embodiments of the present disclosure with reference to theaccompanying drawings. It should be understood that the embodimentsdisclosed herein are illustrative only for better understanding of thepresent disclosure, and that the present disclosure may be modified invarious ways. In addition, for ease understanding of the presentdisclosure, the accompanying drawings are not drawn to real scale, butthe dimensions of some components may be exaggerated.

FIG. 1 is a diagram for illustrating a battery cell degassing apparatusaccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure, FIG. 2 is a sideview showing the battery cell degassing apparatus of FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is adiagram for illustrating a piercing unit employed at the battery celldegassing apparatus of FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 is a diagram for illustratinga pressing unit employed at the battery cell degassing apparatus of FIG.1.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 4, a battery cell degassing apparatus 10 is usedfor degassing a battery cell 50 and may include a chamber cover 100, avacuum chamber 200, a piercing unit 300 and a pressing unit 400.

The battery cell 50 may be a pouch-type secondary battery. The batterycell 50 may include an electrode assembly 52, an electrode lead (notshown), a pouch case 54 and a gas pocket 59.

The electrode assembly 52 may be composed of a positive electrode plate,a negative electrode plate and a separator. An electrode lead isconnected to the electrode assembly and may include a positive electrodelead and a negative electrode lead. The electrode assembly 52 and theelectrode lead are well known in the art and thus are not described indetail here.

The pouch case 54 accommodates the electrode assembly 52, and the pouchcase 54 may be filled with an electrolyte. The pouch case 54 may includea case body 55 and a case rim 57.

The case body 55 may form an accommodation space capable ofaccommodating the electrode assembly 52. The case rim 57 extends fromthe case body 55 and may be sealed to keep the electrode assembly 52 andthe electrolyte in an airtight state.

The gas pocket 59 may be provided at one side of the case rim 57. Thegas pocket 59 may be pierced by a piercing unit 300, explained later, todischarge the gas inside the battery cell 50 to the outside of thebattery cell 50.

The chamber cover 100 slides in a vertical direction along a vacuumchamber 200, explained later, and may be detachably coupled to thevacuum chamber 200, explained later. The battery cell 50 may bedetachably placed on the chamber cover 100. The battery cell 50 may beaccommodated in the vacuum chamber 200 through the chamber cover 100.

The chamber cover 100 may include a cover body 120 and a support jig150.

The cover body 120 is detachably coupled to the vacuum chamber 200 andmay cover one side of the vacuum chamber 200, specifically a bottom sideof the vacuum chamber 200.

The support jig 150 is provided at an inner wall 125 of the cover body120 and may support the battery cell 50. At least one support jig 150may be provided. Hereinafter, this embodiment will be explained based onthe case where a pair of support jigs 150 is provided.

The support jig 150 may include side jigs 160, 170, 180 and a guide jig190.

The side jigs 160, 170, 180 are movably mounted to the inner wall 125 ofthe cover body 120 and may support both sides of the battery cell 50,specifically both sides of the case rim 57.

The side jigs 160, 170, 180 may include a body mounting portion 160, afirst side bridge 170 and a second side bridge 180.

The body mounting portion 160 is movably mounted to the inner wall 125of the cover body 120, and the body mounting portion 160 may be mountedto the inner wall 125 of the cover body 120 to be movable in a right andleft direction of the cover body 120. The body mounting portion 160 maybe provided in plural, and in this embodiment, four body mountingportions 160 are disposed to be spaced apart from each other.

The first side bridge 170 may be mounted to body mounting portions 160provided at a front side, among the plurality of body mounting portions160. The first side bridge 170 may be provided in a pair.

The pair of first side bridges 170 may be mounted to the body mountingportion 160 to be movable in a front and rear direction of the coverbody 120. Here, an elastic member may be included in the body mountingportion 160 to give an elastic force to the pair of first side bridges170.

The pair of first side bridges 170 may support front portions of bothsides of the case rim 57 of the pouch case 54 so that the battery cell50 may be supported.

The second side bridge 180 may be mounted to a body mounting portions160 located at a rear side, among the plurality of body mountingportions 160. The second side bridge 180 may be provided in a pair.

The pair of second side bridges 180 may be mounted to the body mountingportion 160 to be movable in a front and rear direction of the coverbody 120. Here, an elastic member may be included in the body mountingportion 160 to give an elastic force to the pair of second side bridges180.

The pair of second side bridges 180 may support rear portions of bothsides of the case rim 57 of the pouch case 54 so that the battery cell50 may be supported.

Ends of the pair of second side bridges 180 may have elasticity and bebent toward the pair of first side bridges 170. In this case, whensupporting the battery cell 50, the pair of second side bridges 180 maysupport the battery cell 50 more stably.

The guide jig 190 is mounted to the inner wall 125 of the cover body 120and may allow the battery cell 50 to be spaced apart from the inner wallof the cover body 120. When an impact or the like occurs out of thecover body 120, the guide jig 190 may preferentially offset the impacttransferred to the battery cell 50.

The vacuum chamber 200 is detachably coupled to the chamber cover 100and may form an accommodation space capable of accommodating the atleast one battery cell 50.

The vacuum chamber 200 may form a vacuum environment therein when thebattery cell 50 is degassed. Accordingly, in this embodiment, thebattery cell 50 may be degassed in the vacuum chamber 200 that is in thevacuum environment.

The piercing unit 300 is provided at the vacuum chamber 200 and maypierce a part of the gas pocket 59 of the battery cell 50 so that thegas in the battery cell 50 may be discharged out.

The piercing unit 300 may include a first piercing part 320 and a secondpiercing part 360.

The first piercing part 320 is at least partially provided at the leftside of the vacuum chamber 200 and may be provided at the left side ofthe gas pocket 59 of the battery cell 50 inside the vacuum chamber 200.

The first piercing part 320 may include a piercing body 321, a piercinglifting element 323, a perforating element 325, a vacuum pad 327 and ananti-contamination guide 329.

The piercing body 321 is disposed at an upper side in the vacuum chamber200 and may be disposed at a left side of the gas pocket 59 of thebattery cell 50 when the battery cell 50 is accommodated in the vacuumchamber 200.

The piercing lifting element 323 is connected to the piercing body 321and may be at least partially dispose at a left portion out of thevacuum chamber 200. The piercing lifting element 323 may move thepiercing body 321 in a right and left direction inside the vacuumchamber 200. For this, the piercing lifting element 323 may be providedas a pneumatic piston. The piercing lifting element 323 may also be anystructure capable of moving the piercing body 321 in the right and leftdirection in any manner, other than the pneumatic piston.

The perforating element 325 is used for perforating a part of the gaspocket 59 of the battery cell 50 and may be provided at a right side ofthe piercing body 321. The perforating element 325 may move in a rightand left direction along with the right and left movement of thepiercing body 321.

The vacuum pad 327 may be vacuum-attached to the gas pocket 59 of thebattery cell 50 and may be provided at a right side of the piercing body321. The vacuum pad 327 may lift a left side of the gas pocket 59 as thepiercing body 321 moves in a right and left direction, so that the gaspocket 59 is partially widened.

The anti-contamination guide 329 may be provided at a right side of thepiercing body 321, be disposed at a lower side of the vacuum pad 327 andbe disposed to contact the gas pocket 59 of the battery cell 50 as thepiercing body 321 moves in a right and left direction.

The anti-contamination guide 329 may absorb an electrolyte, which mayleak out through a piercing hole P of the gas pocket 59, explainedlater, when the gas in the battery cell 50 is discharged. For this, theanti-contamination guide 329 may be made of a material with greatmoisture absorption property, for example a sponge material.

The second piercing part 360 is at least partially provided at a rightside of the vacuum chamber 200 and may be provided at a right side ofthe gas pocket 59 of the battery cell 50 inside the vacuum chamber 200.In other words, the second piercing part 360 may be disposed to face thefirst piercing part 320 with the gas pocket 59 being interposedtherebetween.

The second piercing part 360 may include a piercing body 361, a piercinglifting element 363, a perforation support 365, a vacuum pad 367 and ananti-contamination guide 369.

The piercing body 361 is disposed at an upper side in the vacuum chamber200 and may be disposed at a right side of the gas pocket 59 of thebattery cell 50 when the battery cell 50 is accommodated in the vacuumchamber 200.

The piercing lifting element 363 is connected to the piercing body 361and may be at least partially disposed at an upper right side out of thevacuum chamber 200. The piercing lifting element 363 may move thepiercing body 361 in a right and left direction inside the vacuumchamber 200. For this, the piercing lifting element 363 may be providedas a pneumatic piston. The piercing lifting element 363 may also be anystructure capable of moving the piercing body 361 in the right and leftdirection in any manner, other than the pneumatic piston.

The perforation support 365 is provided at a left side of the piercingbody 361 and may be disposed to face the perforating element 325 withthe gas pocket 59 being interposed therebetween. The perforation support365 may guide the perforating work of the perforating element 325 whilesupporting the perforating element 325 when the perforating element 325performs perforation.

The vacuum pad 367 may be vacuum-attached to the gas pocket 59 of thebattery cell 50 and may be provided at a left side of the piercing body361. The vacuum pad 367 may lift a right side of the gas pocket 59 asthe piercing body 321 moves in a right and left direction, so that thegas pocket 59 is partially widened.

The anti-contamination guide 369 may be provided at a left side of thepiercing body 361, be disposed at a lower side of the vacuum pad 367 andbe disposed to contact the gas pocket 59 of the battery cell 50 as thepiercing body 361 moves in a right and left direction.

The anti-contamination guide 369 may absorb an electrolyte, which mayleak out through a piercing hole P of the gas pocket 59, explainedlater, when the gas in the battery cell 50 is discharged. For this, theanti-contamination guide 369 may be made of a material with greatmoisture absorption property, for example a sponge material.

The pressing unit 400 is provided at the vacuum chamber 200 to be spacedapart from the piercing unit 300 and may discharge the gas in thebattery cell 50 to the outside of the battery cell 50 while flattening aleft surface and a right surface of the battery cell 50.

The pressing unit 400 may include a first pressing part 420 and a secondpressing part 460.

The first pressing part 420 is at least partially provided at a leftside of the vacuum chamber 200 and may be provided at a left side of thebattery cell 50 inside the vacuum chamber 200. The first pressing part420 may flatten and press the left surface of the battery cell 50.

The first pressing part 420 may include a pressing part body 421, alifting element 423, a roller unit 425 and a driving element 429.

The pressing part body 421 is disposed at a left side of the batterycell 50 when the battery cell 50 is accommodated in the vacuum chamber200 and may flatten and press the left surface of the battery cell 50,specifically the left surface of the case body 55 of the pouch case 54.

The lifting element 423 is connected to the pressing part body 421 andmay be at least partially provided at an outer left side of the vacuumchamber 200. The lifting element 423 may move the pressing part body 421in a right and left direction inside the vacuum chamber 200. For this,the lifting element 423 may be provided as a pneumatic piston. Thelifting element 423 may also be any structure capable of moving thepressing part body 421 in the right and left direction in any manner,other than the pneumatic piston.

The roller unit 425 is mounted at a right side of the pressing part body421 and may slide in a vertical direction of the vacuum chamber 200,namely in an upper and lower direction of the vacuum chamber 200.

The roller unit 425 may include a roller 427.

The roller 427 may be in slidable contact with a part of the leftsurface of the battery cell 50, specifically the left surface of thecase body 55 of the pouch case 54. The roller 427 may move verticallytoward the gas pocket 59 of the battery cell 50 when the battery cell 50is flattened.

The roller 427 may be provided in plural. The plurality of rollers 427may be disposed to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermineddistance in an upper and lower direction of the pressing part body 421.

The driving element 429 is provided inside the vacuum chamber 200 andmay be connected to the roller unit 425. The driving element 429 mayallow the roller unit 425 to slide in the upper and lower direction.

The second pressing part 460 is at least partially provided at a rightside of the vacuum chamber 200 and may be provided at a right side ofthe battery cell 50 inside the vacuum chamber 200. In other words, thesecond pressing part 460 may be disposed to face the first pressing part420 with the battery cell 50 being interposed therebetween. The secondpressing part 460 may flatten and press the right surface of the batterycell 50.

The second pressing part 460 may include a pressing part body 461, alifting element 463, a roller unit 465 and a driving element 469.

The pressing part body 461 is disposed at a right side of the batterycell 50 when the battery cell 50 is accommodated in the vacuum chamber200 and may flatten and press the right surface of the battery cell 50,specifically the right surface of the case body 55 of the pouch case 54.

The lifting element 463 is connected to the pressing part body 461 andmay be at least partially provided at an outer right side of the vacuumchamber 200. The lifting element 463 may move the pressing part body 461in a right and left direction inside the vacuum chamber 200. For this,the lifting element 463 may be provided as a pneumatic piston. Thelifting element 463 may also be any structure capable of moving thepressing part body 461 in the right and left direction in any manner,other than the pneumatic piston.

The roller unit 465 may be mounted at a left side of the pressing partbody 461 and may slide in a vertical direction of the vacuum chamber200, namely in an upper and lower direction of the vacuum chamber 200.

The roller unit 465 may include a roller 467.

The roller 467 may be in slidable contact with a part of the rightsurface of the battery cell 50, specifically the right surface of thecase body 55 of the pouch case 54. The roller 467 may move verticallytoward the gas pocket 59 of the battery cell 50 when the battery cell 50is flattened.

The roller 467 may be provided in plural. The plurality of rollers 467may be disposed to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermineddistance in an upper and lower direction of the pressing part body 461.

The driving element 469 is provided inside the vacuum chamber 200 andmay be connected to the roller unit 465. The driving element 469 mayallow the roller unit 465 to slide in the upper and lower direction.

Hereinafter, detailed operations of the battery cell degassing apparatus10 configured as above will be described in more detail.

FIGS. 5 to 9 are diagrams for illustrating operations of the batterycell degassing apparatus of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 5, first, a worker or the like may mount the batterycell 50 to the support jig 150 of the chamber cover 100. At this time,the worker or the like may suitably move the side jigs 160, 170, 180according to the size of the battery cell 50 and fix the side jigs 160,170, 180 to both sides of the battery cell 50.

If the battery cell 50 is completely mounted to the chamber cover 100,the worker or the like may slide the chamber cover 100 to be coupled tothe vacuum chamber 200.

Referring to FIG. 6, if the battery cell 50 is disposed inside thevacuum chamber 200, the worker or the like may move the first piercingpart 320 and the second piercing part 360 in a right and left directionto make contact with the gas pocket 59 of the battery cell 50.

Referring to FIG. 7, after that, the worker or the like may slide thepiercing body 321 of the first piercing part 320 in a right directionand slide the piercing body 361 of the second piercing part 360 in aleft direction.

By the sliding, the perforating element 325 may form a piercing hole Pin the gas pocket 59 together with the perforation support 365. Inaddition, by the sliding, the vacuum pads 327, 367 may be adsorbed tothe left and right surfaces of the gas pocket 59, respectively.

Referring to FIG. 8, the worker or the like may slide the piercing body321 of the first piercing part 320 in a left direction and slide thepiercing body 361 of the second piercing part 360 in a right direction.By the sliding, the vacuum pad 327 may be moved in a left direction andthe vacuum pad 367 may be moved in a right direction so that the insideof the gas pocket 59 is widened to both sides.

Referring to FIG. 9, after that, the worker or the like may form avacuum environment inside the vacuum chamber 200. In addition, theworker or the like may move the first pressing part 420 and the secondpressing part 460 in a right and left direction to contact the left andright surfaces of the battery cell 50, namely the left and rightsurfaces of the case body 55 of the pouch case 54.

In addition, the worker or the like may uniformly press the left andright surfaces of the battery cell 50, specifically the left and rightsurfaces of the case body 55 of the pouch case 54 while moving therollers 427 of the first pressing part 420 and the rollers 467 of thesecond pressing part 460 in a vertical direction toward the gas pocket59, respectively.

As described above, in this embodiment, since the left and rightsurfaces of the battery cell 50 are pressed in a rolling manner usingthe rollers 427, 467, the battery cell 50 may be pressed uniformlycompared to a conventional pressing method. Accordingly, in thisembodiment, the gas in the center portion of the battery cell 50 may beeffectively guided toward the gas pocket 59.

In addition, in this embodiment, the rolling is performed togetherinside the vacuum chamber 200 in a vacuum state, and thus the processefficiency may be greatly improved, compared to a case where a vacuumprocess is performed separately using a separate tool.

In addition, in this embodiment, all of the left and right surfaces ofthe battery cell 50 are pressed and each surface is pressed using theplurality of rollers 427, 467, and thus the pressing efficiency may begreatly improved, compared to a rolling method using a single roller.

By the pressing, the gas in the battery cell 50 may be moved toward thegas pocket 59 and discharged out of the battery cell 50 through thepiercing hole P of the gas pocket 59.

In this embodiment, since the inside of the gas pocket 59 is widened inadvance by the vacuum pads 327, 367 before the pressing, the gas movedtoward the gas pocket 59 may be more smoothly guided toward the piercinghole P of the gas pocket 59.

Moreover, in this embodiment, since the anti-contamination guides 329,369 are provided between the piercing hole P and the case body 55 of thepouch case 54, even though the electrolyte leaks out of the gasdischarge hole P, it is possible to prevent the electrolyte from beingtransferred to the case body 55 of the pouch case 54, by means of theanti-contamination guides 329, 369. Accordingly, in this embodiment,during the degassing process, it is possible to minimize the externalcontamination of the battery cell 50 caused by the electrolyte leakingfrom the battery cell 50.

As described above, the battery cell degassing apparatus 10 according tothis embodiment may increase the gas removal efficiency from the batterycell 50 during the degassing process and minimize the externalcontamination of the battery cell due to the electrolyte leakage

While the embodiments of the present disclosure have been shown anddescribed, it should be understood that the present disclosure is notlimited to the specific embodiments described, and that various changesand modifications can be made within the scope of the present disclosureby those skilled in the art, and these modifications should not beunderstood individually from the technical ideas and views of thepresent disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A battery cell degassing apparatus for degassinga battery cell having a gas pocket, comprising: a chamber cover to whichthe battery cell is detachably mounted; a vacuum chamber coupled to thechamber cover and configured to accommodate the battery cell in a vacuumenvironment, the chamber cover being slidable in a vertical directionwith respect to the vacuum chamber; a piercing unit provided at thevacuum chamber to pierce a part of the gas pocket; and a pressing unitprovided at the vacuum chamber to be spaced apart from the piercing unitand configured to flatten a left surface and a right surface of thebattery cell and to discharge a gas inside the battery cell to theoutside of the battery cell.
 2. The battery cell degassing apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the chamber cover includes: a cover bodydetachably coupled to the vacuum chamber to cover one side of the vacuumchamber; and a support jig provided at the cover body to support thebattery cell.
 3. The battery cell degassing apparatus according to claim2, wherein the support jig includes: a side jig movably mounted to aninner wall of the cover body to support opposite ends of the batterycell; and a guide jig mounted to the inner wall of the cover body toallow the battery cell to be spaced apart from the inner wall of thecover body.
 4. The battery cell degassing apparatus according to claim3, wherein the side jig is mounted to the cover body to be movable in atleast one of a front and rear direction and a right and left directionwith respect to the cover body.
 5. The battery cell degassing apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the piercing unit includes: a firstpiercing part provided at a left side of the gas pocket inside thevacuum chamber; and a second piercing part disposed to face the firstpiercing part such that the gas pocket is interposable therebetween. 6.The battery cell degassing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein thefirst piercing part includes a perforating element to perforate a partof the gas pocket.
 7. The battery cell degassing apparatus according toclaim 6, wherein the second piercing part includes a perforation supportdisposed to face the perforating element to support the perforatingelement when the perforating element performs perforation of the gaspocket.
 8. The battery cell degassing apparatus according to claim 5,wherein each of the first piercing part and the second piercing partincludes a vacuum pad that is vacuum-attachable to the gas pocket tospread the gas pocket apart.
 9. The battery cell degassing apparatusaccording to claim 5, wherein each of the first piercing part and thesecond piercing part includes an anti-contamination guide that iscontactable with the gas pocket to absorb an electrolyte leaking out ofthe gas pocket.
 10. The battery cell degassing apparatus according toclaim 1, wherein the pressing unit includes: a first pressing partprovided at a left side of the battery cell when the battery cell isinside the vacuum chamber to flatten and press the left surface of thebattery cell; and a second pressing part disposed to face the firstpressing part to flatten and press the right surface of the battery cellwhen the battery cell is interposed therebetween.
 11. The battery celldegassing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the first pressingpart includes: a pressing part body configured to flatten and press theleft surface of the battery cell; and a lifting element connected to thepressing part body to move the pressing part body.
 12. The battery celldegassing apparatus according to claim 11, wherein at least one rolleris provided at a right side of the pressing part body to slidablycontact a part of the left surface of the battery cell, and wherein thepressing part body is vertically movable toward the gas pocket.
 13. Thebattery cell degassing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein thesecond pressing part includes: a pressing part body configured toflatten and press the right surface of the battery cell; and a liftingelement connected to the pressing part body to move the pressing partbody.
 14. The battery cell degassing apparatus according to claim 13,wherein at least one roller is provided at a left side of the pressingpart body to slidably contact a part of the right surface of the batterycell, and wherein the pressing part body is vertically movable towardthe gas pocket.
 15. The battery cell degassing apparatus according toclaim 1, wherein the battery cell is a pouch-type secondary battery.